


A Trick of the Mind

by TheSilverPen



Category: Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: F/M, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Not Canon Compliant, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Spider-Man: Far From Home (Movie), Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-04
Updated: 2020-05-10
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:21:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,688
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23997427
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheSilverPen/pseuds/TheSilverPen
Summary: Peter goes on the trip with his class as planned, but the fight with Beck ends a lot differently than anyone saw coming.
Relationships: Betty Brant/Ned Leeds, Michelle Jones & Ned Leeds & Peter Parker, Michelle Jones/Peter Parker, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 1
Kudos: 31





	1. Round One

Peter stumbled through the hotel lobby, not sure if the people he passed were real or fake. He knew if they were real, they were staring at him. He was certain he looked like crap. His suit was torn, and there were cuts and bruises all along the exposed skin. The fight with Beck had been brutal, but he knew the battle was far from over. Beck had beat him this time, but he'd be back. MJ approached him but he flinched, taking a step back. "Peter? Peter it's me…it's MJ." She assured, stepping towards him. Peter nearly collapsed in her arms as she pulled him towards her. He hated showing weakness around this many people but he didn't care. MJ led him to his hotel room, helping him to sit down on the bed. "God, Peter, he really did a number on you…" 

"S'not as bad as it looks…" He tried, wincing slightly. Peter released his suit, peeling it off gently. "I need to make a new suit. I have to call Mr. Stark." He sighed. "He's gonna be so disappointed. He never wanted me to go on this trip…if he knew I was going up against Beck alone…" Peter finished taking off his suit and tossed it aside. 

MJ frowned, kissing his cheek. "Take a bath first. Not a shower, a bath. Your leg looks bad and I don't trust you to stand on your own. Then call Mr. Stark." Peter nodded, waiting as MJ drew up a bath. He carefully climbed in, sighing as he sank into the hot water. Mr. Stark had been right. Peter had wanted to go on this trip alone, with no Avengers hiding out nearby in case he got in trouble, because he felt like he needed it. He wanted to prove he was strong enough to deal with things on his own. But he wasn't. He was weak, and Beck had played on that. His fears of losing everyone; of losing Mr. Stark and his family. Peter sank further down in the water, sighing deeply. He knew what would happen the minute he called Mr. Stark. He'd send the team, have them hiding nearby in case Beck attacked again and he couldn't fight him. Peter didn't want that. He wanted to do this on his own. Ever since he'd lost his arm, he'd been struggling to feel like himself. The first few weeks after he got it, he'd done fine, but then the depression and realization set in. He was never going to be the same again, no matter what he did. The trip was a chance to forget about things in New York for a while.

Peter examined his leg, flexing it to check it. He stood slowly and climbed out, grabbing the robe from the door and putting it on. He dried off, leaving the robe on and pulling on a pair of sweats. He hobbled slowly out to the bed and sat down, propping his leg up on the extra pillows. MJ was waiting with an ice pack, which she gently placed on his knee. Peter grabbed his phone from the nightstand and dialed Mr. Stark's number, sighing deeply. He picked up on the second ring. "Peter! Are you alright? I saw the news footage of what's going on over there. I can have the team up and on the way in under thirty minutes, you just say the word." 

"No! Please, Mr. Stark I can do this! I-I just need a new suit…" He sighed. 

"A new suit? What happened to the la- no, no I'm not even going to ask that. I know what happened to it. Alright, I'll make a deal with you. I'll bring the plane with the mobile lab and we can make a new suit. But, you have to let me put a team on standby. Not everyone. Just Cap, Nat and Barton. Nat will kill me if I let this go further without her there. May is already raising a fit. I'm surprised she hasn't called you. I suggest you call her." Tony began. "I'll be there in a couple of hours. Get some sleep before I get there."

Peter smiled. "Yeah, I will. Thanks Mr. Stark!" He hung up, setting the phone down. MJ walked over, taking a seat on the edge of the bed.  
"I'm guessing that went well?" She asked, smiling. 

Peter nodded. He set the phone down, sliding down in the bed. If he was being honest, every part of his body was still aching. MJ climbed onto the bed beside him, resting her head on his chest. "He's gonna be here in a few hours so we can-" he stopped, yawning. "- make a new suit." His eyes drooped as he started to fall asleep. MJ smiled softly, stroking his hair as he drifted off, finally settling in to the much needed rest.


	2. Battle of London

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter faces off against Beck, and it doesn't go well for either of them.

"How's it look?" Peter asked, turning slightly to show off the suit. Tony stood back, checking it over. 

"It looks good. I'd say you're ready. I've got the team on standby like I said. Promise me if anything goes wrong, you'll contact me or the team?" Tony instructed. Peter let out a sigh and nodded. Tony grabbed his arm as he started to walk off the jet. "Peter." 

"Yeah?" Peter asked, looking up at his mentor.

"Just," Tony sighed. "Be careful, please. I don't want you getting hurt again." 

Peter smiled softly. "I'll be careful." He walked off the plane, nervous for the fight. He knew that he had the advantage, now that they knew the truth about Beck. All he had to do was disrupt the holograms and then the fight would be easy. Straight hand-to-hand combat. Or, at least that's what Peter was hoping for.   
*********  
"Mr. Stark! Fly me over the center of the storm!" Peter yelled into the comms, clinging to the side of the quinjet. "I can get a better view from there!" 

Tony flew the plane higher, angling Peter perfectly over the storm. "I'm going in!" He replied, dropping off the plane and plummeting towards the water. He flew into the Elemental, latching onto one of the drones. He leapt across them, stringing them together and causing them to short-circuit. Suddenly, the Elemental hologram dissolved, causing Peter to be revealed. He launched himself at the bridge, smacking into the side and tumbling to the ground. He landed hard, wincing as he got to his feet. That's a few broken ribs… he thought to himself, climbing to his feet. He launched a web at a nearby building, swinging into the air and attempting to escape the onslaught of incoming drones that Beck had now sent after him. "You won't escape this one, Spiderman." He growled menacingly. 

Everything exploded around him, disorienting him as he fought off the drones. He aimed to shoot another web, but his mechanical arm wouldn't respond. "What the-?" He barely got the sentence out before he was slamming into the side of a building. "Beck must've used EDITH to hack into my arm!" He turned the comms on, calling Tony. "Mr. Stark! Beck hacked my arm. How do I get control back?" He asked. 

"What? If he hacked into the arm with EDITH there's no way to get it back. Get it off before it attacks you!" Tony explained. Peter's eyes widen as he quickly dislodged the arm and tossed it. Thankfully the explosions had caused enough of his suit to rip away that he was able to tear the rest of the sleeve off. _Okay, this fight just got a lot harder…_ Peter though as he used his remaining webshooter to fling himself up and onto the bridge. He slammed his fist into the glass, busting open a hole. He dropped down, landing behind Beck. 

"Ah, Spiderman. I've been waiting for you." Beck chuckled, turning. "Oh, well, I guess you're only 4/5ths of Spiderman now. Shame about the arm." He grinned, hitting a button on his tablet. "Remember how painful that was? Here's a reminder." Suddenly, Peter's arm felt like it was on fire. He could see the bloody stump in place of the smooth metal. "You gave up your arm for those Avengers and how do they treat you? Like a child! You can't even go on a trip without them sending a watch team. You really think Tony Stark trusts you? He doesn’t even care about you!" 

"You're lying and I know it! You won't get in my head this time, Beck!" Peter growled. He blinked and suddenly the illusion was gone. The smooth metal plate on his arm had returned. 

Beck appeared behind Peter, grabbing him and flipping him. "You'll give in. They all do!" Peter tried to get up but Beck pinned him to the ground, punching him repeatedly. "He took everything from me! HE RUINED MY LIFE!" Beck flung Peter across the bridge, storming after him. Peter got to his feet, barely able to stand. He fired a web at Beck, jumping over the man's head and landing behind him. The move tripped up the illusionist, sending him sprawling onto the floor. 

"I don't know what you want! What do I have to do with all of this?!" Peter asked.

Beck stood, laughing. "I worked for Tony Stark. I made him who he is! I DID THE WORK! And then he fires me! I'm dead in the water without a job! Meanwhile you get to reap the benefits of his technology! I'll make him regret ever letting me go." Before Peter could blink, Beck launched himself forward, stabbing Peter in the stomach with a knife. Peter stumbled backwards in shock, nearly losing his footing. He steadied himself, hoisting himself up on to one of the remaining drones that lingered and drop-kicked Beck in the chest, sending him flying backward. Beck attempted to get up, but faltered, dropping back down. 

"You lied to me. I trusted you and you lied to me." Peter replied. A shot rang out and Peter instantly reached out, grasping the real Beck by the throat and lifting him off the ground. "You won't get the chance to do it again." Beck smiled as blood began to leak from the corner of his mouth. Peter glanced down, spotting a bullet wound in his abdomen. 

"I may be dying," He laughed. "But at least I know you'll go down with me." Beck triggered a button, causing the entire structure to collapse. Peter went sprawling, losing his grip on the illusionist and landing on the ground with a sickening thud. His vision was swimming, his head pounding furiously. 

"PETER!" MJ's voice rang out. He could just see her running towards him, her form blurry as the darkness overcame him.


	3. Toxic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter's situation is dire and seemingly only getting worse after the fight with Beck.

"-eter?" MJ's voice broke through the fog in Peter's head, drawing him back to consciousness. He groaned loudly, wincing as he opened his eyes. MJ was staring down at him, tears in her eyes. The smell of smoke and explosives told him they were still near the battle site. "Hey…there you are…" She smiled tearfully. He tried to sit up, screaming as pain ripped through him. "What is it?!" MJ asked, panicked. 

"My stomach! B-Beck stabbed me and i-it's not healing…" He groaned. "W-We need to get out of here." MJ nodded, helping him to his feet. He nearly collapsed from the combined pain in his leg and stomach. He glanced down, realizing there was a bullet hole in his leg. The bullet that had ricocheted off the wall and killed Beck had hit him too. His vision was fading fast and he knew he wasn't going to make it to the hotel. Suddenly, Ned came running towards them, Betty behind him. 

MJ stopped, letting Peter rest for a moment. "MJ! Peter! You're alive! Oh thank god. I thought you were dead with all that exploding!" Ned stopped, staring at Peter. "Whoa, you don't look so good man…" Peter wanted to make a snarky comment, but his body betrayed him. His legs gave out and he went down, blacking out in the process. "Peter!" Ned knelt down, helping MJ lift Peter up and carry him to the hotel. Tony met them half way there. 

"What happened?!" He asked frantically. 

MJ let out a sigh as Tony picked Peter up, carrying him the rest of the way up to the room. "The fight with Beck was a lot worse than we thought. Peter managed to tell me that Beck stabbed him and there's a bullet wound in his leg. He's in really bad shape." She explained.

Tony laid Peter down on the bed gently, deactivating the spider suit. He slid it down so that he could see the stab wound on Peter's stomach. There were angry deep purple lines coiling out from the wound, almost like snakes running up his chest. The wound was still bleeding and didn't show any signs of healing any time soon. "It's a toxin or poison. I won't know until I can get a sample and Bruce and I can analyze it in the lab. Happy's on his way with a new plane but it's going to be a few hours. I'm not sure Peter has that kind of time…" He noted grimly. Tony's heart was in his throat. Peter had come so far after the final battle with Thanos, and he couldn't bear to see him like this. He'd come so close to losing the kid he'd come to call his son and now that threat was very real again. He could see the looks in Ned and MJ's eyes that they felt the potential loss too. They knew what was at stake. 

He walked into the bathroom, filling a bowl with water and grabbing a washcloth. Sitting on the edge of the bed, he gently wiped the blood from Peter's face. There was a bruise forming on his temple and small cuts decorated his face. Tony rang the cloth out, gently dabbing at the stab wound. He looked for any sign that Peter was in pain, but the boy was silent. MJ passed Tony the first aid kit and he accepted it with a small murmur of thanks. He bandaged Peter's side carefully. Tony got up to wash his hands but ended up sinking to the floor of the bathroom. He tried as hard as he could to hold back the tears he felt welling up in his eyes. _Why am I like this?_ He pondered, his head in his hands. Tony had never thought of himself as an emotional parent, or he'd never thought he would be. Then Morgan came along and everything changed. Of course, Tony was realizing now that things had changed long before Morgan came along. Tony had become a parent the day he'd met Peter. He hadn't known it then, but somehow the kid had gotten into his heart.   
******************  
Happy arrived with the plane in less time than Tony thought. Nat, Steve and Clint were retrieving Beck's body and searching for his associates. Tony carried Peter onto the plane with MJ and Ned tagging along behind him. He'd been tempted to say no, but he knew he'd never hear the end of it if he did. Bruce was waiting on the plane when they got on. "Set him down and let me take a look." The scientist instructed. Tony laid Peter on the cot, stepping back to let Bruce work. "It's a type of toxin, I'm certain." He drew blood, staring at the sample in the tube. It was turning a sickly shade of green. Tony's stomach lurched. "It's systemic. Whatever it is, it's in the bloodstream which means it's easily able to reach his organs. If it's only suppressing his healing then the danger is lower, but if it's what I think it is, it's going to eventually kill him." He explained. "I need to run tests to find out." 

"How long do we have?" Tony asked, trying to hold his voice steady. 

Bruce looked at him sadly. "Days. Maybe less. Tony, he's going to die if we can't find a cure."


End file.
